Apatosaurus
|location = |diet = |exhibit_size = |performer = No }} The Apatosaurus is a huge sauropod dinosaur that is related to the Brachiosaurus, it is adoptable in Zoo Tycoon: Dinosaur Digs and is a deciduous forest animal, and is usually hidden because it requires a lot of trees. In Zoo Tycoon The Apatosaurus is the largest animal in the game. It will attack guests for no apparent reason, though one would think Apatosaurus would be simply too big even to notice them. The animal is also rather inaccurate, its neck is too long and skinny, and its feet bear large hooflike claws on each toe, when in reality they would have looked more like hoofs with a single large claw. Its status as a deciduous forest animal is also incorrect, since deciduous, broad-leafed trees did not exist in Apatosaurus's time. Coniferous forest would have been a more accurate biome. In game, Apatosaurus is one of the most difficult dinosaurs to keep, even more challenging than ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. It is very picky about its exhibit and even when the zookeeper's recommendation says its needs are met, there will still be much editing needed to fully satisfy its needs. Remember to check its habitat status and make sure it is kept high, otherwise it will become unhappy quickly. Apatosaurus can live alone or in small groups. Description Apatosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaurs that lived about about 140 million years ago, during the Jurassic period. They were some of the largest land animals that ever existed, about 4.5 meters (15 feet) tall at the hips, with a length of up to 25 meters (80 feet) and a mass up to 35 metric tonnes (40 tons). Apatosaurus was a large, long-necked, quadrupedal animal with a long, whip-like tail. Its fore limbs were slightly shorter than its hind limbs. Most size estimates are based on specimen CM 3018, the type specimen of A. louisae. In 1936, this was measured to be 21.8 m (72 ft), by measuring the vertebral column. Current estimates are similar, which find the individual was 21–22.8 m (69–75 ft) long and had a mass of 16.4–22.4 t (16–22 long tons; 18–25 short tons). It was believed that Apatosaurus was too massive to support its own weight on dry land, so it was theorized that the sauropod must have lived partly submerged in water, perhaps in a swamp. Recent findings do not support this. In fact, like its relative Diplodocus, Apatosaurus was a grazing animal with a very long neck, and a long tail that served as a counterweight. Fossilized footprints indicate that it probably lived in herds. To aid in processing food, Apatosaurus may have swallowed gizzard stones (gastroliths) the same way many birds do today — its jaws alone were not sufficient to chew tough plant fibers. Fossils of this animal have been found in Nine Mile Quarry and Bone Cabin Quarry in Wyoming, and at sites in Colorado, Oklahoma, Utah, USA Category:Dinosaurs Category:Sauropods Category:Dinosaur Digs animals Category:Animals Category:Zoo Tycoon animals Category:Herbivores Category:Official Zoo Tycoon animals Category:Official animals Category:Extinct animals Category:Unlockable animals Category:Official Dinosaurs Category:Jurassic Dinosaurs Category:Deciduous Forest animals Category:Grassland animals Category:Extinct Animals animals Category:North American animals Category:American Animals Category:North American Dinosaurs Category:American Dinosaurs Category:North American Herbivores Category:American Herbivores Category:Conservation Animals Category:Archosaurs